Name: One-of-a-Kind Primitive Folk-art Dolls
Made by and When: Barbara Elsleger; Jayda and Tootie (2010); (Nella) 2018; (small dolls) 2019
Material: Cloth, synthetic hair, mohair, paint, sealant, cotton fabric, stuffing, lace, and ribbons
Marks: Each doll has a card stock hang tag with its name on the front. The artist’s name and the year made are on the back.
Height: 14 inches (the smaller, held dolls are 5-1/2 inches tall).
Jayda and Tootie
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Hair, Eyes, Mouths: Synthetic hair* is styled in several pigtails tied with peach cloth ribbon. Each doll has painted facial features with black-painted eyes.
Clothes: Dressed in coordinated peach and cream, lace-trimmed dresses; cream lace-trimmed pantalettes, and white tights, Jayda wears painted-peach lace-up shoes. Tootie’s shoes are off-white.
Nella
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Hair, Eyes, Mouth: The brown mohair wig is accented with one top ribbon. Bella has painted facial features with black eyes.
Clothes: Nella wears a handmade tea-stained sweater over a white tea-stained top and skirt. White pantalettes and painted-on black side-button boots complete the doll’s costume.
Small Dolls
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Made for larger dolls to hold, the small dolls have hand-painted facial features, black-painted hair, one-piece stuffed-cloth bodies, handmade ribbon and lace dresses, and lace undergarments.
Other: Barbara Elsleger created these one-of-a-kind “primitive folk-art” dolls, and labeled them Prim-Art . *Wefts of brown mohair were used originally for Jayda and Tootie’s hair. After the artist retouched their faces in 2019, the mohair wigs were replaced with synthetic fiber wigs. Jayda, Tootie, and Nella have applied cloth ears.
Gallery
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